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Tuesday, 17 September 2013

The Journal (Her Master's Voice) by Liv Honeywell and Domitri Xavier

It’s a great
pleasure to have Liv Honeywell and Domitri Xavier, co-authors of the wonderful
book, The Journal (Her Master’s Voice) come visit with me today.

TF: Hi Liv and
Domitri. Thank you so much for coming to visit on my blog. How are you?

Domitri: Feeling really, really well, thank
you. Creative too. Liv and I are furiously at work on our
next book.

Liv: Really busy but definitely
enjoying it, thank you. I’m loving working on the new book.

TF: I have to
confess, I went on Amazon to have a sneak preview of The Journal, found it
mesmerising and ended up buying and reading it in one sitting. One of the first
things that struck me was the way you and Domitri used the third person for the
Master and the first person for the slave. What made you decide to do it that
way?

Domitri: Thank you,
Tara. I’m so glad it had that effect on you. Funny you
mention the change in voices.

Liv remembers it well but I don’t. I started off
in the first person and quite without any conscious thought, moved to third
person, so by the end, we had half the book written in first person and half
written in third. I’m not sure that that was a wise decision. Certainly in our
new book, Shreds, (I want to get the plug in early ;)) I deliberately chose to
write in the first person and I hope I’ve been able to portray the character
far more fully using his voice. He does have a sense of fun, believe
it or not, but that isn’t much in evidence because the tone of The Journal is
quite serious and sombre.

Liv: Thank you, Tara. That’s a
lovely compliment and I’m so glad you enjoyed the book. We did start writing
The Journal in first person and, as you can probably imagine, writing it like
that was very intense. The way I write (well actually, both of us do) is to really
get into the character we are putting on the page and try and feel what they
would feel, like an actor does when playing a role. So of course, when we got
quite far into the punishment scene, I was finding it very challenging and when
Livia got upset, at times so did I. And I remember that happened once and
Domitri was worried about hurting me for real. The next day his chapter had
swapped to third person and he kept it like that. I think it was his way of
distancing himself from that, and I actually really wish he hadn’t. What is
wonderful about Shreds is that both of us are allowing ourselves to be open and
to get involved with the story and the characters, and I think Shreds will be a
better book for it.

TF: The Master and
slave are so totally in tune with one another that I’m really curious about how
well you know each other in real life? Have you guys actually met or was this
book conceived and executed electronically? And can you tell me a
little about how the whole concept began?

Domitri: Thank you
again. I’m so glad that it comes across that
way. Liv and I speak to each other most days via Skype. We are
very close friends but have only met up two or three times. The whole book was
conceived and written in our separate homes. We read each chapter to each other
out loud to make sure we have continuity and flow and correct Liv’s
grammar! After many exchanges of emails about the possibility
of writing together, I sent Liv a few short paragraphs, which I thought might
provoke some sort of response. Well, it did! And we were off to the
races. But you have to bear in mind that these were very short and snappy
exchanges. We had to tidy them up and edit them extensively before the book
could come to its final form.

Liv: Oh thank you so much. That’s
exactly how we wanted them to come across. We are very good friends and we do
talk quite a lot about BDSM and Master/slave relationships because we are in
the lifestyle, so hopefully that comes over in the book. We really didn’t plot
the book out between us. We simply responded to each other’s writing and then
smoothed the story out once we had a full first draft.

I should also point out that there
is nothing wrong with my grammar. She’s far too busy knitting right now or
she’d be having serious words with Domitri!

TF: I don’t want
to give anything away but, this book, although for sure it has real and
tangible love, is no softly, softly BDSM–themed love story. Were you ever
nervous about the subject matter as you were writing, that it would just come
across as cruel rather than two people in tune with one another? There were
certainly one or two shock factors for me in there.

Domitri: Yes.
I was very concerned that, to an audience who are not in tune with the M/s
dynamic, the book would appear harsh, rough and insensitive. What you must bear
in mind is that what Liv’s character did in The Journal was a threat to their
whole relationship and so the punishment had to fit the crime. Our next book,
Shreds, is more playful and the love is more evident between the
characters. In some ways I wish Shreds had been the first book in
the series for that reason. These people really do adore each other.

Liv: The
book is a love story, definitely, though perhaps not a typical one. Domitri is
right. They adore each other and this is a very difficult situation for both of
them. Livia is so sorry for what she has done and her Master very angry and
hurt, and what they go through in The Journal is how they work through it and
see if they can come out the other side of it together. Once we had a first
draft, I did suggest to Domitri that perhaps the book needed to hear more from
the Master about how hurt he had been by Livia’s actions and how sad he was,
and also how much he didn’t want to have to punish her, but he knew he needed
to in order to get their relationship back on an even keel. I think if Domitri
hadn’t written so beautifully on how the Master felt, the book wouldn’t have
worked as it did. We really didn’t want it to come across as abuse or sadism
for sadism’s sake.

TF: The Master’s
words and thoughts are echoed by the slave, using the exact same words at
times, which shows them to be almost as one. I’m curious about the mechanics.
Domitri, did you write a chapter and Liv respond, or did you brainstorm a few
key points for each chapter and both work around the key points?

Domitri: Nothing
was brainstormed. I wrote a chapter and sent it to Liv without her having any
prior knowledge of its contents. That way, she was much more inclined to react
instinctively to the voice of her fictional Master. I wrote a
chapter and waited with baited breath as Liv read it at home. If she came back
onto Skype a quivering wreck, I knew I had done my job well!

Liv: Domitri
drip fed me each chapter without telling me anything at all about the plot. I
had no idea what was coming next or how the story was going to end until we had
a full first draft and I really did react instinctively to each chapter as I
got it. It put me almost into the same headspace as Livia and really helped me
to write her. For my part, if I wrote something and sent it to Domitri, what I
really wanted to see when he’d read it was that evil, sadistic Domly grin to
know that I’d got it right.

TF: I don’t think
I ever read a story the whole way through without knowing either main
characters name! Was this a deliberate decision? What was your reasoning for it?

Domitri: Actually,
it’s hard to remember. For the longest time, I hid behind the anonymity of
having no name; Domitri Xavier was still a long way off both in the book and in
real life. Given the tone of the book, I needed a certain measure of
distance. In our next book, Shreds, we do learn much more about the characters,
name them and learn much more about them as individuals. I thought
at the time (I seem to recall) that if I gave the characters names it might perhaps
humanise them too much. I believed that, because of the harshness of
some of the things I had to write, I wanted to keep them a little at arm’s
length. That’s not so now.

Liv: We
didn’t name either of them in the book, but we did refer to the slave as Livia
in the back cover copy. When I’ve written stories before, I’ve quite often not
named the characters and done very little physical description of them because
I like the reader to be able to imagine themselves in the story. This time,
however, it seemed right to keep the characters as Master and slave in the book
as with this being a punishment, Livia would absolutely have been calling him
Sir or Master throughout, and he would not have been affectionately using her
name.

TF: I am so glad
you are already working on another book together. This was incredible. Can you
let readers know if it’s a pleasure to be repeated at this stage?

Domitri: Thank
you again, Tara. The answer is a resounding yes! Perhaps
I let slip the title of our next book, Shreds? We are planning a series of
books, each based on one of my poems, under the series title of Her Master’s
Voice. Each one will explore different aspects of the M/s
dynamic. As I’ve said already, the tone of The Journal was
necessarily harsh, while Shreds sees the Master, now revealed as Marcus, having
enormous fun on his birthday at Livia’s expense! When I say lighter,
I don’t mean in any sense less erotic. Shreds sheds more light and
puts together more pieces in the jigsaw of their lives. It focuses
on a completely different time and place and maybe even stage in their
relationship.

Liv: Thank
you so much. It really does mean a lot to hear that. Yes, Domitri, you may just
have mentioned it once or twice… ;). As Domitri said, we are working on Shreds,
the next in the series. This one is about a beautiful red dress which gets
ripped and torn off very slowly. It is intense, because that’s the kind of
relationship Marcus and Livia have, but it’s also sensual, erotic and fun.

TF: Well, I for one rather relish the thought of seeing this pair, now I can even call them their names, Livia and Marcus, meet up again under slightly happier circumstances.Thank you so
much for coming to visit on my blog. It was a real pleasure for me. And I have
to say interviewing you is almost like reading your book, your responses are so
well attuned. And thank you for sharing an extract with my blog readers
too.

Domitri: It
was a great pleasure, Tara. They were such good questions and great
fun to answer. Lots of love to you and your readers.

Liv: Thank
you very much for having us. We really enjoyed answering the questions.

The Journal
Release Blitz

Blurb:

“Come to my study at eight o’clock
sharp. Dress for dinner. Wear high heels and put on that dress – you know what
I expect of you.”

When the order comes Livia is torn
between anticipation and dread.

Does he know? How could he possibly
know what she has done? And how can she find the words and the courage to tell
him?

As eight o’clock edges ever nearer,
Livia waits outside the study door, trembling; uncertain of what she will find
when she comes face to face with her Master.

If he knows… If he
does, there will be consequences. There is no doubt about that.

What will be the price for her
moment of disobedience?

Excerpt:

"Look at me."

The words I had been half hoping
for, half dreading. Would he be able to tell what I was thinking? I opened my
eyes and looked up at him, letting him see how vulnerable I was before him and
how much I wanted to please him. The expression on his face almost stopped my
breath. There was so much love in his eyes, such emotion, and I swallowed
against the lump in my throat and blinked back tears of joy mixed sickeningly
with guilt. How very much I loved this man, and what I had done to him…

He swept me into his arms and
kissed me hard, his hands roaming my body again. Our tongues tangled; his
determinedly invading my mouth, mine softly yielding to his touch. I leaned
against him, wishing that I could hold him too. I pressed my body against his,
wanting to show him how much he meant to me, hoping that would be enough.

He broke the kiss and moved
slightly, his hand slipping between our bodies to tease me between my legs
again. I was soaking wet. How could I be otherwise? He did not even need to
touch me to provoke this reaction. When we were together, his presence was
enough and, when apart, just the thought of him was all I needed. My body was
not mine any more. It responded to him, ached for him, whether I would wish it
or not. I could deny him nothing.

He lifted his hand to my mouth; his
fingers wet, and gently painted my lips with my own juices. I tasted my arousal
on my tongue but would have no more dared to wipe it away, than I would think
to say ‘no’ to him. I stood with my mouth open, my juices trickling down my
chin, awaiting his pleasure.

He pressed his fingers further into
my mouth, probing deeply and I tried to relax, to let him penetrate where he
would, but I choked as his finger reached the back of my mouth. “No,” he yelled
and I shrank back, mortified that I had not been able to give him what he
required of me. I hurried to open my mouth again, concentrating hard on
relaxing my throat, and this time I was fully open to him.

He removed his hand from my mouth
and lifted my dress, stroking and exploring my breasts. I licked his fingers
when asked and he circled my nipples so lightly and tenderly that it was almost
difficult to believe that he could ever hurt me.

His touch on my breasts roughened
and he gripped them tightly, crushing my nipples. I closed my eyes, torn once
again between pain and pleasure; so aroused it was close to unbearable. My
knees weakened and I leaned against him, my head resting against his shoulder.
I could feel the hard length of his cock pressing against my hip and I moved
just a little against it, hoping, despite what I’d done, that this time he
would use my body; that I would feel him deep inside me.

When not writing about delicious,
hot male dominants and the female subs who love them, I’m usually doing
something craft-like, reading, baking, eating the results of said baking, and
attempting to satisfy the demands of His High and Mighty Dominance (the cat!).
My first story, Imagine, was published with Silver Moon Books last year and
Coming, Ready or Not! is my first solo book. The Journal was co-written with
Domitri Xavier.

Domitri Xavier is not only an
author of erotic fiction and poetry, he also has a parallel career as a pianist
and composer. Under another name, he is also a published author of books and
poems for children.

He is an active Dom/Master and
delights in all that brings; from damsels in distress to always getting his own
way in domestic disputes. [If only this were true. Ed]

He has little time for hobbies
being one of those extraordinarily fortunate people who makes a modest living
by doing the things he loves best. He is an ardent chess player but has yet to
record a victory, although he did come close once when he took on an eight year
old girl.

I'd like to take this opportunity to post my own review of this
quite unique book also.

5 out of 5 stars

Not a gentle book yet the eros is intense. It’s almost
frighteningly so, even as the Master punishes the slave, the slave adores him
and is grateful. She knows she has sinned deeply and she’s waiting but yet
hoping he’ll still love and forgive her.

The chapters are synchronised perfectly. The master’s voice first,
giving his thoughts of what’s passing then the slave’s voice, redoing the same
moment in time but with her thoughts, ovten echoing his words but putting her
take on them.

The two voices work incredibly well together, at times when I was
reading the masters voice, I wanted to cry for the slave, but then when I saw
it from the slave’s point of view it became obvious that they were almost part
of the same whole, bound by their mutual needs or desires.

If you are up for an intense Master/slave read and willing to look
at it from the characters point of view, without being to faint-hearted, then
this is a wonderfully written example. The intensity of such a relationship is
portrayed brilliantly in every chapter.

Thank you from me too, Tara (why does SHE always have to get in before ME?!) It really was a pleasure to answer your intelligent and thoughtful questions. And, as Liv managed to say before me (again!!) your review was word perfect and such a boost to our confidence. Always a pleasure ;)